Through the door ice service has traditionally been provided through the freezer door which requires opening of a passage through the freezer door into the freezer compartment, thus exposing the freezer compartment to room temperature and humidity whenever the dispenser is activated. As a result frost builds up in the freezer compartment which must be defrosted periodically to maintain freezer efficiency.
Typical examples of this type of ice service are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,102,660, entitled, "Ice Guide for Refrigerator with External Ice Service," issued on Jul. 25, 1978, wherein a trip mechanism is provided for opening and closing a door in the ice delivery chute. Water is also provided through a tube which extends through the door and door hinge to a reservoir in the refrigerator. U.S. Pat. No. 3,747,363 to Grimm and No. 4,306,757 to Horvay, et al. are typical examples of freezer door ice dispensers which dispense ice through a chute in the freezer door.